Outline

Objective: Previous investigations from our department showed that patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) evaluate their cognitive functions poorer than healthy subjects, however only few objective differences were found. This discrepancy between subjective experience and objective performance can be explained by the hypothesis that AR patients invest more “mental effort” in order to achieve the same performances, resulting in earlier exhaustion. Especially, this should be measured in the more time-demanding and strenuous cognitive tests.

Material and Method: AR patients and healthy subjects were tested before and during the allergic season, with a combination of subjective questionnaires and time-demanding strenuous objective cognitive tests.

Results: The following tests seemed suitable: Mackworth Clock and Continuous Performance Test for measuring sustained attention, Word Learning Task for short and long term memory, Tower of London for executive functioning and Motor Choice Reaction Test for the speed of data processing and the motor system. Significant differences in cognitive functions were found between patients with AR and healthy subjects. Furthermore, scores from visual analogue scales showed that there are significant differences in mental effort to perform certain tasks.

Conclusions: The battery of cognitive measures we developed should enable us to measure the effects of AR on cognitive functions, which can not be found with the existing tests on cognitive functioning.